Archived/non-paywalled link. A $4 billion offshore wind project called Vineyard Wind, off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, MA, is nearing completion as wind turbines are actively being constructed...
A $4 billion offshore wind project called Vineyard Wind, off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, MA, is nearing completion as wind turbines are actively being constructed on the mainland. The project is expected to begin generating electricity this year – "enough power to light up 400,000 homes" (~1.4% of Massachussetts residences) – with the entire project apparently being finished next summer. The project features 62 windmills 850 feet high with blades 350 feet long.
Similar projects along the Eastern Seaboard, if approved and completed, could add an additional 75x the capacity of this project, getting the United States caught up with European counterparts in the North Sea.
There are some amazing photographs of the construction process here. I love the aesthetic design of modern windmills – they look sleek, elegant, and beautiful in a futuristic sort of way. Whenever I see a turbine in person, I end up staring for a long time.
See these types of farms when you're on the South coast of England, they're a sight to behold. Read a really interesting NewStatesman article (I think it was NS) recently about the transition to...
See these types of farms when you're on the South coast of England, they're a sight to behold.
Read a really interesting NewStatesman article (I think it was NS) recently about the transition to renewables in the old coal mining areas. It's hugely problematic as there are so many who just end up out of a job. Where each Giga-watt needed 250 jobs... now it needs 3. Was really harrowing to realise how barrow those places are going to become when the mines close eventually.
See: Yorkshire/Wales for how bad things can get (Beautiful areas, but there's some serious pockets of poverty)
In rural Wisconsin there is a large number of wind farms as well as solar farms that are taking over. The windmills are able to be placed in the middle of crop or grazing fields and are typically...
In rural Wisconsin there is a large number of wind farms as well as solar farms that are taking over. The windmills are able to be placed in the middle of crop or grazing fields and are typically used to subsist traditional farming. The solar fields are replacing farms that are no longer profitable due to climate change or lack of demand for the crops they previously produced.
If we can safely install these farms with minimal impact to the environment, then we should be doing all we can to support them.
Archived/non-paywalled link.
A $4 billion offshore wind project called Vineyard Wind, off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, MA, is nearing completion as wind turbines are actively being constructed on the mainland. The project is expected to begin generating electricity this year – "enough power to light up 400,000 homes" (~1.4% of Massachussetts residences) – with the entire project apparently being finished next summer. The project features 62 windmills 850 feet high with blades 350 feet long.
Similar projects along the Eastern Seaboard, if approved and completed, could add an additional 75x the capacity of this project, getting the United States caught up with European counterparts in the North Sea.
There are some amazing photographs of the construction process here. I love the aesthetic design of modern windmills – they look sleek, elegant, and beautiful in a futuristic sort of way. Whenever I see a turbine in person, I end up staring for a long time.
See these types of farms when you're on the South coast of England, they're a sight to behold.
Read a really interesting NewStatesman article (I think it was NS) recently about the transition to renewables in the old coal mining areas. It's hugely problematic as there are so many who just end up out of a job. Where each Giga-watt needed 250 jobs... now it needs 3. Was really harrowing to realise how barrow those places are going to become when the mines close eventually.
See: Yorkshire/Wales for how bad things can get (Beautiful areas, but there's some serious pockets of poverty)
In rural Wisconsin there is a large number of wind farms as well as solar farms that are taking over. The windmills are able to be placed in the middle of crop or grazing fields and are typically used to subsist traditional farming. The solar fields are replacing farms that are no longer profitable due to climate change or lack of demand for the crops they previously produced.
If we can safely install these farms with minimal impact to the environment, then we should be doing all we can to support them.